Methuselah (sequoia tree) facts for kids
The Methuselah Tree is a very tall giant sequoia tree. It lives in the Mountain Home State Forest in eastern California. This forest is a special place where many giant sequoia trees grow. The Methuselah Tree is one of the biggest giant sequoias in the world. It is currently ranked as the 28th largest.
It is important not to mix up this Methuselah Tree with another famous tree. There is also a "Methuselah Tree" in the White Mountains of California. That one is a different type of tree called a bristlecone pine. For a while, that bristlecone pine was thought to be the oldest tree on Earth!
The Story of Its Name
Around the year 1884, a person named Jesse Hoskins gave names to many trees in the Mountain Home Grove. He named this giant sequoia the Methuselah Tree. He thought the moss hanging from its bark looked like the long beard of a very old person. The name "Methuselah" comes from a story about the oldest man in the world.
The Methuselah Tree has a top that broke off a long time ago. It also has a very wide base, which is almost as big as the famous Boole tree.
How Big Is It?
When the Methuselah Tree was first measured in the 1950s, it was about 68.6 meters (225 feet) tall. But before the 1980s, its top broke off. This probably happened during a big storm. After that, the tree was shorter, under 63.4 meters (208 feet). However, a new branch at the very top has started growing upwards. This means the tree is slowly getting taller again!
In 1987, a person named Wendell D. Flint collected measurements for the tree. These numbers help us understand how big it is. The table below shows some of its impressive sizes.
| Metres | Feet | |
|---|---|---|
| Height above base | 63.3 | 207.8 |
| Circumference at ground | 29.2 | 95.8 |
| Diameter at ground level | 8.4 | 27.4 |
| Diameter 5 ft (1.5 m) above ground | 7.3 | 24.0 |
| Estimated volume (m³.ft³) | 931.5 | 32,897 |
In 2013, new measurements showed its height was about 70.30 meters (230.6 feet).
